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.` ('N-e Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 1.

C. G. BBEGHEY. AUTOMATIC GAS METER.

Patented Mar.` 1,0, 1896.

4 Sheets-Sheet 2A Patented-Mar. l0, 1896.

(No Modem U. G.'BEECHEY.

v AUTOMATIC GAYS METER. No. 556,299.

(NoModel.) 4 Sheets-$119993.

9.GBBE9HBY; v AUTOMATIC' GAS METER. No. 556,999. 'Patented Mar. 1o, 1896.

af v

No Model.) Y 4 sheetssheet- 4.

C. G.' BEECHEY.

AUTOMATIC GASMBTBR.

556,299. Patented-Mar. 1o, 1896.

f UNITED 'STATESV PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES GRANTLEY BEECHEY, OF LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND.

AUTOMATIC GAS-METER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 556,299, dated March 10, 1.896. "Application filed Augusmi, 1895. Striano. 500,010. (Numdam To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES GRANTLEY BEECHEY, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at Liverpool, in the county of Lancaster, England, have invented new and useful Improvements in or Connected with Automatic Gas-Meters and other Coin-Freed Apparat us, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has reference to gas-meters in which the act of placing a coin or the like in it, assuming it to be locked, will free or allow the meter to pass a given quantity of gas and which, after such a volume of gas has been passed through it, automatically becomes stopped or locked, and no more gas can pass through until another1 coin or the like, or a number of coins, isl placed in the apparatus. The invention, however, has reference in part to other meters than gas meters or apparatus,where a coin or the like placed in it frees it and allows it to act or be operated or set in action.

The invention will now be described as applied to what are generallycalled coin-freed gas-meters,7 and to that kind of such meters in which, if more than one coin is placed in it at one time, the coins actually passing froml will only be passed as the quantity of gas paid for by each coin passed through it has been or is being consumed.

This application of the invention will be described with the aid of the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is an elevation showing the face of the apparatus or mechanism. Fig. 2 is a side elevation in section. Figs. 3, 4, and 5 are cross-sections at A A, B B, and C C, respectively, of Fig. 2, while Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the lower part of the mechanism. Figs. 7 and 8 show, in side and front `elevations, a modication of the invention.

Under this invention there is employed a tube to receive the coins as introduced, for conveying them to the operating mechanism and for holding two or more of said coins, a mechanism below operated bythe meter itself and adapted to remove the coins from this tube one by one as the gas for which they are the payment is consumed and to deliver them to the money-drawer or other receptacle, and a stop or detent and freeing or releasing mechanism.

Referring to the drawings, a designates generally the tube into which the coins are introduced, and this tube is provided with a means or mechanism and is so constructed and adapted to operate that the successive coins which are introduced into itare caused to take such a position in relation to each other that the planes in which they lie intersect each other, whereby the adjacent coins in the tube cross each other and rest one upon the other, and therefore can never jam or stick, but are always resting fairly with their edges one upon the other, and are perfectly free.

A simple and convenient method or means by which the successive coins are caused to take these relative positions in the tube a is a switch b, that shown being hinged at b' just inside the conduit a at the upper part, while the tube itself at this part is provided with two central webs c', which guide and hold the coins with their faces in vertical plan es, and thetube itself being of considerable width the coins are enabled to adjust themselves to different angular positions while maintaining their faces in vertical planes. A slight spring b2 is connected to the point of the switch b and exerts a pressure which tends to retain it in the position to which it is moved by the action of each coin inserted. Below this switch a rail a2 at either side of the tube is provided,

'forming a channel a3 at either side of such..

rail, and the groove at one side into which the coin falls will be the opposite one to that which receives the other edge at the'other side. The action is that when a coin is introduced into the slot c4 at the upper end of c it passes into the switch portion of the tube, and in falling vdown between the ribs CL' one edge comes in IOO manner throughout the rest of the apparatus. The switch b having thus been reversed by the action of this coin, the next coin that is introduced into the conduit will have its edge pressed to the opposite side thereof, and thereby the reverse transverse position will be given it to that of the preceding one, and its edges will therefore pass into the other two of the grooves ai, and if the former coin be still in the tube will rest upon its edge, but in a position or plane intersecting that of such coin below.

The means by which the coins are removed from the tube a and discharged into the coindrawer (not shown) are operated from a suitable part of the meter in the action of passing gas, and it is disposed at the lower part of the tube a and consists of a double sliding trap, having an upper door, CZ, and a lower door, CZ. This trap is moved by the connecting-rod e to and fro laterally across the tube a, the doors (Z and cZ in the construction shown forming upper and lower horizontal plates on a verticallyguided plate (Z2, the door (Z being disposed on the plate Z2 at one side, while the door d is at J[he opposite side, so that in operation, when the door (Z stands across and forms a sliding bottom to the tube u, the door (Z stands in a position away from the lower end of the tube a, and vice versa. Thus in action (assuming there be a number of coins in the tube a one upon another) when the slide-bar e moved by the meter withdraws the trap, so as to bring the door (Z out of the tube a in the position shown in Fig. 6, a coin would fall from the tube onto the lower door, (Z,but the upper ones would still be carried by this lower coin, and then as the meter works on and moves back the trap the top door, d, will slide in between the two coins and support that or those above, while the lower door, (Z, when this is done would be moved back so far as to allow the coin in the part of the tube between (Z and LZ to fall out into the coin receptacle or drawer, and this action will continueas long as one coin is in the meter.

The mechanism for operating the trap shown in Fig. G and for locking same when the gas for which coins have been introduced has all been consumed is as follows: The connect ing-rod c, by which the trap is moved to and fro, is operated from the shaft f, which ordinarily actuates the counter mechanism of the meter, and this through the worm l thereon and a worm-wheel ln (shown in dotted lines) gearing with it and a train of wheels 2, 3, 3, Si, 4, 5, G, 7, and 8 operates a disk 7L on the axis of the toothed wheel S, which disk through a connecting-rod h2 and the bell-crank lever L' oscillates the rod c to and fro at each revolution. This constitutes the whole mechanism for giving motion to the trap.

The mechanism for stopping the action of themeter and supply of gas when the amount paid for has been consumed consists of a tappet j, which is actuated to free the meter by the coins as they pass into the trap portion of the tube a, while the weight of the parts con nected with it move it in the opposite direction when no coin is in such portion and effect a locking action between the parts operated by it and the disk h, and so stop the mechanism within the meter, and also the valve by which the flow of gas through the meter is controlled, or either of them. In the example given in the drawings both these effects are produced, and the means connected with tappet j by which this is obtained consists in connecting the meter gas-valve spindle j to and working it through the tappet j, the arms Za and k', bar Z, and arm m, which is mounted on the same spindle n as is the tappet j, and by locking the disk 7L by a pin Z on the bar Z, which, when the notch at h in the disk 7L comes opposite this pin in the disk-rotation, and no coin is in the tube a or trap, falls into said gap by gravity, and further rotation of the disk 7L is stopped. In this latter action the bar Z is lifted (its engagement with m being such as to allow of its being raised and lowered) and the meter valve-spindle j is thereby pressed in and the valve closed. By these means, both the gas-supply and the acting mechanism of the meter are stopped.

"When the machine is empty the trap will be in the position shown in Figs. l and G, and therefore the coin introduced will fall down the conduit and strike the tappet or pawl j, the action of which is that it and the arm fm, will be moved outward, and therefore the rod Zwill also be moved outward and withd raw the pin Z' from the disk h, whereupon the mechanism of the meter is unlocked or freed, and at the same time the rod Z and arm Zt are free to fall, and by their own weight (or by a spring) do fall and so open the valve which controls the passage of gas. Then when a complete revolution is partly made the coin falls from the trap and the tappet j and arm m will be moved back by the weight of the rod Z or by a spring. During the rotation of the disk h the end of the pin Z rests on its face, and as soon as the gap h arrives opposite the Din Z the pin Z drops into the gap and the lever m and tappet t' move into the normal position, as in Fig. 2; but the lower end of the bar Z being free in the hole in the end of the arm m the disk 7L will rotate a certain amount and lift the bar and so move the arm 7.: until it closes the gas-valve. )Vlien this is done the disk 7L is held.

The tube a by the slot a4 is adapted to take only coins of a given size or value, and it is provided with means at the upper part by which coins of smaller sizes are discharged from the tube. This means consists in providing one side of the slot a with an opening a5 of slightly less width than the slot itself and providing such slot with rings p, carried in a bar p below. The action of this device is that when the proper size and value of coin is introduced the lower edge of it acting upon the rings p presses them back, and so the coin passes them and falls down the tube; but

IOO

IOS

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when a smaller coin is introduced this coin will not be held at its edges, and therefore the rings p cause it to pass away from the slot in an outward direction, and so throw the coin out of the tube. As a means of closing the tube d when full of coins, the mouth or slot a4 is closed by a plate o, which is inclined, as shown, and supported on the hinged rocking lever o', the opposite end, 02, of which is acted upon by the coins in the tube when full up to the lower edge of the bars ct. If when the tube is full to this point a coin be pressed into the slot a4 t-he plate 0 cannot be pressed back, as the tail o2 of the device is stopped from being moved inward by the presence of the uppermost coin in the tube. Vhen, however, coins are removed fromthe tube, then by pressing a coin into the slot the edge acting upon the inclined plate o presses it back and allows the coin to fall into the tube. By this means no coins will be held or rest in the switch portion of the tube, which is desirable. To prevent wires or such like being passed down the tube d to tamper with the meter, the upper end or plate, 0, and the lower part, 02, of the lever o are carried right across the tube and so bar the entrance to any such device and obviate cheating and wrongful use of the meter.

The crosswise positions of the successive coins in the tube are shown in Fig. 5.

The mechanism shown would, of course, all be inclosed in a suitable casing formed on or attached to the meter-body, the slot d4 being open.

With regard to the train of wheels l, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, &c., upon the spindle q there are two toothed wheels 3a and 3b, 3* always being in gear with the wheel 4L and of a fixed size, while the wheel 3 is changeable, and according to the size of the wheel the position of the spindle q will change, a slot r in the supporting-plate s being provided to allow of change of position of its axis. T-he purpose of this wheel-changin g arran gement is that as the price of gas per unit varies the amount of movement of the controlling mechanism which governs the frequency of action of the trap which receives and discharges the coins must be changed. This simple device effects this end.

Regarding the modification shown in Figs. 7 and 8, the coin-trap in this case, instead of being a sliding one, as shown in Figs. l to 6, is an oscillating one. It consists of a plate d, which is disposed under one side of the tube d and mounted on a pin-pivot d3 to the tube. Its operation-that is, oscillation-is effected by the disk h, in the same manner as the trap set forth with reference to Figs. 1 to 6, through the connecting-rod h2, the lower end of which is connected to the trap d through an arm d4. The action of this modification is as follows: In the normal or stationary position the plate dx is horizontal, in which position it will hold a coin either in the one groove of the tube ct at this side or in the part of it at that side which has been moved away will be removed from under the coin, and so allow it to fall. In the case of there being another coin above, the edge of which will be in the groove at' the other side of the tube, this coin will fall down and will be caught by the part of the plate CZX which will be directly under the groove at that side of the tube. When, however, the trap dx. is moved in the opposite direction by the other half-revolution of the disk h, the plate dx will be withdrawn from under this coin in the same way as from under the other coin just described. This arrangement of trap is preferable to that set forth with reference to Figs. l to (i, in that even coins bent very considerably do not interfere with or render less certain its continuous and correct action.

As regards the application of this invention to other coin-freed or automatic apparatus, as meters or measuring apparatus, or other analogous cases where a plurality of coins can, or may with the assistance of this invention, be placed in the apparatus one after another, the improvements herein described, connected with the means by which these successive coins are caused to take the relative positions, as specified, can be used with great advantage, and, also, the combination, with this improvement, of the means of discharging or removing the coins one by one and of stopping or locking the apparatus after the luse thereof which has been paid for by the coins introduced can be used with advantage with such other types or kinds of apparatus, and, further, with respect to the particular forms or constructions of means by which the different modes of operation and of behavior and manipulation are automatically performed, these are not restricted under this invention to those more particularly set forth with reference to and shown in the drawings, as they may be modified or varied as to form or type and equivalents thereof used without departing from the essential or controlling characteristics of the improvements and the purposes of their use and application, and what is claimed in respect of this invention, both including and irrespective of the particular apparatus and mechanisms described herein with reference to and shown in the drawings, is pointed out, specified, or referred to in the following claiming clauses.

I claiml. In a coin freed or actuated iiuid-meter or like apparatus, into which coins are introduced into a tube or conduit, the combination of a tube or conduit adapted to cause the successive coins to take a crosswise position in IOO IIO

relation to each other; a moving trap device working in connection with the lower end of such tube or conduit, and actuated by a part of the said meter or other apparatus moved by the fluid passing through it; and detent means by which when there are. no coins in the said tube or conduit said trap is locked and stopped; substantially as set forth.

2. In a coin freed or actuated duid-meter or like apparatus in which coins are introduced into a tube, the improvement consisting of a tube or conduit down which the coins introduced pass, having a switch at its upper part adapted to cause the successive coins to take a crosswise position in relation to each other therein; for the purposes described.

3. In a coin freed or actuated meter, the combination of a tube into which the coins are introduced, adapted to cause the successive coins to take a transverse position in relation to each other; a moving trap at the lower part of said conduit by which the coins are removed from the tube one by one, operating to and fro, and actuated by the movement of the meter in passing the material for which payment is made by said coins; and a mechanism actuated by the coins in the conduit, and by a disk device actuated by said meter, whereby the action of the mechanism, and the movement of material through the meter are stopped; for the purposes set forth.

il. In a coin-freed meter or like apparatus, the combination of a tube into which the coins are introduced, and a switch device at the upper part of the same operated alternately in opposite directions by the coins as introduced,

and by which the coins in passing down said tube are in succession caused to take a crosswise position in relation to each other; substantially as and for the purposes described.

5. In a coin freed or actuated meter or like apparatus, a tube or conduit into which the coins are introduced; a trap oscillated to and fro by the movement of the apparatus itself; and a locking means actuated by the coins in passing through said tube and trap, by which said trap is locked, and a valve controlling the flow of fluid through the meter closed; substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

G. The tube ct having the switch I), and grooves or channels a3 at either side; said switch and grooves co-operating to make the coins stand on edge one above the other and to take a erosswise position in relation to each other as set forth with reference to the drawings.

7 In a coin-freed meter or like apparatus, the combination of vertical coin-tube adapted to receive a plurality of coins, and means consisting of the rings 1J supported loosely on the pin p and extending across the channel for the coin by which coins smaller than those which it is designed to be used in connection with the apparatus are thrown out of the tube substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix. my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES GRANTLEI' BEECIIEY.

Witnesses FREDERICK JOHN CHEEsBnoUGH, .Tenn IIINDLEY WALKER. 

